"You know, the prevailing wisdom is you're going to sign a veteran quarterback," he recounted being told Wednesday while meeting with a small contingent of reporters at the NFL scouting combine.

"Whose prevailing wisdom," he countered, "is that? That is, everyone in the league thinks you're going to be a player."

"Then," he added with a wide grin and a chuckle, "I guess I should."

The Broncos' general manager was willing to play along because he knows how this game works.

Specifically, he knows that the only four letters people think of when they see him now are: R-O-M-O.

The Broncos enter a wild but important offseason, arguably the most important of Elway's tenure as a Denver executive, as he searches for his quarterback for now and the future, revamps an offense that fell flat last season and looks to right a franchise that, statistically, got off course in 2016.

The Super Bowl 50 victors were mere bystanders for this past season's playoffs. Now, with 10 draft picks and more than $40 million in salary cap space, Elway and Co. have plenty to work with to find more star power, more talent and more help on both sides of the ball. It starts this week, when the free-agency negotiation period begins Tuesday and players can officially sign new deals Thursday. Elway, the man of many surprises, will be a player in some capacity.

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"I'll say this: We're going to look at all the options," he said. "Once they become available, we're going to look at all the options. ... Because it's not only about winning next year; it's also about what it does to the future, too."

But his strategy ultimately depends on the pieces at his disposal.

Elway and Broncos coach Vance Joseph have said repeatedly that they're happy with their two young quarterbacks, Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch. They've said repeatedly that they will hold another quarterback competition to find their 2017 starter. And they've said repeatedly that they want to develop the two for the future.

But it's what they're not saying that is generating more interest.

The elephant in the room is Tony Romo, not yet a free agent and, as of now, not available to be had. He's under contract with Dallas — a really big contract — that includes $14 million in salary next season and cap charges of $24.7 million, $25.2 million and $23.7 million over the next three years, respectively.

Romo is a Cowboy until owner Jerry Jones says he's not and agrees to either trade or release him.

"This is now Dak Prescott's team, but it can't fully become Dak Prescott's until Tony Romo is no longer on the roster," said former agent and CBS Sports contract analyst Joel Corry. "And Romo doesn't want to be a backup quarterback, so you're creating a situation that could potentially blow up in their face."

So then it becomes: Do the Cowboys shop him? Or release him? Both plans require the Cowboys to eat at least $19.6 million in dead money. If they release or trade him before June 1, Dallas will have that $19.6 million on their books for 2017, severely limiting their options in free agency. If they designate Romo a post-June 1 release, they can split the dead money over two seasons.

"The trade value and the number of teams that are interested in him may make it that they may just release him anyway, because what are you going to get for Romo, who's an aging quarterback with durability concerns?" Corry said. "You're not going to get a high draft pick for him. Brett Favre went for what was a (third-round pick) — it was a conditional fourth that elevated to a third — so that would be your best-case scenario, something like that."

Romo will have suitors beyond Denver if he's made available. The most intriguing suitor, perhaps, is Houston, the team that spent big on Brock Osweiler a year ago and seemingly regrets it. But there are also Chicago, where Jay Cutler is out, and Kansas City, who could possibly want more out of their quarterback than what they've received from Alex Smith.

The Boulder alt-country band gives its EPs names such as Death and Resurrection, and its songs bear the mark of hard truths and sin. But the punk energy behind the playing, and the sense that it's all in good fun, make it OK to dance to a song like "Death." Full Story